Chapter 382: A One-Day Tour in Jinling

Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation

“Brother, let’s go to the Xuanwu Hotel near Xuanwu Lake. I heard the food there is particularly delicious, although it’s a bit pricey!” Guo Yan said, gesturing with her hand.

“Since you want to eat there, let’s go, Lin Wu. Xuanwu Hotel!”

“Sure thing, boss!”

Xuanwu Hotel was located by the Xuanwu Lake, a well-established five-star hotel. Besides savoring delicious food, they could also enjoy the beautiful scenery of Xuanwu Lake.

They weren’t far from Xuanwu Hotel, and it took less than 5 minutes to reach the hotel’s parking lot.

“Brother, hurry up, my stomach is growling!” Guo Yan couldn’t wait any longer as soon as they got out of the car.

“Alright, calm down!” Zhou Chao looked at Guo Yan, who had already reached the hotel’s entrance, with a slight sense of helplessness.

Upon entering the hotel, they chose the Chinese-style Jingdieyuan, which offered a scenic view by the window. The weather was great today, allowing them to admire the beauty of Xuanwu Lake.

As soon as they sat down, a waiter approached with a menu.

“Xiao Yan, take a look at the menu. Let’s order the signature dishes, and each of us can have a dessert as well,” Zhou Chao instructed the waiter, handing the menu to Guo Yan.

Guo Yan eagerly studied the menu, but after flipping through it for a while, she couldn’t decide on anything.

“What’s the matter?”

“I don’t know what to order; everything looks so delicious. I’m suffering from decision paralysis!”

Zhou Chao shook his head and took the menu. After a quick glance, he pointed to a few signature dishes and said, “Let’s get these signature dishes, and each of us can have a dessert before the meal.”

“Alright, please wait a moment,” the waiter said, taking the menu and bowing slightly before leaving.

“When will you receive your results for the college entrance exam?”

“Well, they will be released the day after tomorrow. Why do you ask, brother?”

“What’s your estimated score?”

“I estimated it to be around 670, but I’m not sure now,” Guo Yan replied after some thought.

“Okay.” Zhou Chao nodded and didn’t say more, shifting his gaze outside.

Guo Yan and Lin Wu exchanged puzzled looks, wondering what was going on.

After a while, Zhou Chao turned back to them and said, “If you score above 670, I’m thinking of sending you to a military academy.”

“A military academy?!” Guo Yan was surprised, and even Lin Wu next to her seemed taken aback.

“Well, any objections?”

“Brother, I don’t know anything, can I really get into a military academy?” Guo Yan looked at him with doubt.

“As long as your score is good, there won’t be any issues. We can discuss it when your exam results come out.”

“Alright, I understand!” Guo Yan had secretly wished to attend a military academy, but she knew the admission criteria were tough, and she had doubts about her chances.

While Guo Yan was still contemplating, a waiter wheeled a serving trolley over.

Delicious Huaiyang cuisine dishes were placed on the table, and Guo Yan, smelling the aroma, stared at them intently, trying to figure out which dish to start with.

“Eat up, there are no outsiders here, so why are you acting so reserved!” Zhou Chao chuckled as he watched Guo Yan’s expression.

“Brother, you should try the hand-pulled pigeon wings. The best part is on the wings, and I’ll reluctantly eat the leg!” Guo Yan said, happily grabbing a pigeon leg.

Seeing Guo Yan’s deft moves, Zhou Chao and Lin Wu were left stunned.

They exchanged glances and couldn’t help but smile.

“Brother, are you guys going to eat, or are you just going to stare at the food with your chopsticks?” Guo Yan held a pigeon leg and looked at the two of them.

“We’re eating, we’re eating!” Immediately, the two of them started eating.

It’s worth mentioning that as a well-established five-star hotel in Jinling, they really nailed this aspect. Every dish had its unique charm, fully showcasing the style of Huaiyang cuisine.

The three of them didn’t speak; they just dug into their meal. After all, they hadn’t eaten breakfast, and with the delicious dishes before them, in less than 10 minutes, they had almost finished eating.

“So satisfying, these hand-pulled pigeon wings are truly delicious!” Guo Yan leaned back in her chair, patted her round belly, and had a contented look on her face.

“We’ve pretty much finished eating, let’s go!”

The three of them left the restaurant and looked at the Ming City Wall not far away.

“Brother, do you see that gate on the city wall over there? It’s the entrance to Jinling Xuanwu Gate. Should we climb up from there?”

“Sure, il’ll follow your wishes!” Zhou Chao watched Guo Yan’s excitement and smiled, shaking his head.

In his heart, he was also glad that he came to Jinling and had this opportunity. Otherwise, it would have been a mistake he could never make up for.

After leaving Xuanwu Hotel, the three of them headed straight to Xuanwu Gate, separated only by a road.

They soon arrived at the entrance of Xuanwu Gate’s city wall. They climbed the stairs along the wall’s base to reach the top. Although it didn’t seem very high, they still felt a bit tired when they got there. Guo Yan was slightly out of breath as soon as she reached the top.

As the saying goes, “You’re not a hero until you’ve climbed the Great Wall,” and “You’re not a true-hearted person until you’ve seen the Yellow River.” Today, being able to see the Ming City Wall was quite an experience.

“Why, is there any difference between the Ming City Wall and other city walls?” For Zhou Chao, who was completely ignorant in this area, it was a total blind spot of knowledge.

Of course, there’s a difference. Jinling’s Ming City Wall is the best-preserved ancient city wall in the world, with the longest length, the largest scale, and the best-preserved original features. The Ming City Wall has a total of four layers, including the Imperial City, the Palace City, the Capital City, and the Outer City, which served as the Ming Dynasty’s capital, Ying Tian Fu. So, it’s unique in the world!

As a masterpiece of ancient Chinese military defense structures, it represents the culmination of city wall construction technology. In terms of historical value, viewing value, archaeological value, as well as architectural design, scale, and function, domestic and foreign city walls cannot be compared. It’s another grand structure after the Great Wall.”

Listening to Guo Yan’s enthusiastic explanation, Zhou Chao and Lin Wu exchanged glances, both with a hint of amusement in their eyes.

After Guo Yan finished her introduction, she tilted her head as if to say, “Aren’t 1 amazing?”

But after waiting for a long time without any praise, Guo Yan quickly turned around and realized that her brother and Lin Wu had already walked ahead.

“Brother, you two wait for me!” Guo Yan hurriedly caught up with them.

The three of them walked along the Ming City Wall by Xuanwu Lake towards the direction of Jiming Temple. Along the way, they enjoyed the beautiful scenery of Xuanwu Lake, occasionally taking photos. It felt like a long journey, but they soon arrived.

Following the stairs down from the city wall, Guo Yan quickly ran to a small convenience store and bought a few bottles of water, which they started drinking.

“All, I’m so tired. Brother, have some water!” It seemed that after yesterday’s incident, she had become more considerate.

“Yeah!” Zhou Chao and Lin Wu each took a bottle and started drinking. Although they weren’t very tired, they were quite thirsty.

The three of them sat on a bench under the city wall’s base and rested for about 20 minutes before Guo Yan felt fully recovered.

“Brother, let’s go. If we keep taking breaks, it’ll get dark before we know it!”

“Hmm, it seems like I’m the one who delayed us. Who was it just now telling me to take a break? Lin Wu, was it you?”

Lin Wu quickly shook his head. “Boss, look at my physique. I’ll only need a breath or two for my rest.”

Seeing Zhou Chao and Lin Wu teasing her, Guo Yan kicked the pavement tiles on the sidewalk angrily, as if venting her frustration.

“Alright, alright, let’s not talk about it anymore, or our little princess will start crying!”

“You’re the one who’s going to cry. I’m very tough!” Guo Yan pouted and said with a huff.

Zhou Chao and Lin Wu smiled and didn’t tease Guo Yan any further. Instead, they continued on their way to Jiming Temple.

Jiming Temple had a history of more than 1,700 years and was one of the oldest temples in Jinling. It had been known as the “leader of the 480 temples of the Southern Dynasties” since ancient times, which spoke to its significance.

After purchasing three tickets, they entered the temple grounds.

It was summer vacation, and many tourists were visiting. Zhou Chao and his companions followed the crowd as they explored the temple.

Upon entering the temple gate, they found a spacious courtyard and walked along the covered walkway.

“Brother, I heard that your wishes will be granted if you pray at Jiming Temple. Do you want to give it a try?”

“No need. If you don’t work hard regularly, last-minute prayers won’t help. It depends on your own efforts. Burning incense is just for personal consolation.”

“Oh.” Since Zhou Chao put it that way, Guo Yan had to abandon her idea.

After exploring Jiming Temple for about half an hour, they left. Zhou Chao wasn’t particularly interested in these things.

“Boss, you wait here. I’ll go get the car!”

“No need. Let’s go directly to the Jinling Museum. It’s getting late after touring the museum, and we can head to Xuanwu Hotel afterward.” Zhou Chao thought for a moment and shook his head.

The three of them hailed a taxi by the roadside and headed to the Jinling Museum.

The museum is located on Zhongshan East Road in Xuanwu District, not far from their location. It only took a few minutes by taxi to arrive.

The Jinling Museum typically opened at 3 PM and closed at 5 PM. By the time Zhou Chao and his friends arrived, it was already close to 4 PM, so they had about an hour to explore the museum.

The entrance fee wasn’t very expensive, and the three of them spent less than a hundred yuan, which was considerably cheaper than before.

“Brother, come take a look. Is this the famous Silver Thread and Jade Robe?”

“It’s written right there!” Zhou Chao looked at Guo Yan with a hint of annoyance. It seemed like this girl wanted to regain her previous position. He reminded himself to pay more attention, so he wouldn’t end up in an awkward situation if he couldn’t answer a question later.

“I just wanted to see if you knew!”

Pretending not to hear, Zhou Chao continued to the next exhibit.

After wandering around and seeing the eighteen treasured artifacts of the Jinling Museum, the three of them also looked at some other exhibits. They hadn’t even seen half of the museum when it was time to close, and they were feeling a bit disappointed.

Leaving the museum, they took a car to Xuanwu Hotel. Guo Yan, who had been walking all afternoon, was already quite hungry and had a simple meal at Xuanwu Hotel.

By the time they returned to the hotel, it was 8 PM.

Zhou Chao was lying comfortably on the bed when his phone, which was placed on the side table, began to ring..